Glacier National Park!

It was raining lightly when we woke up this morning but it did not look as if it was settled in for the day, so we made sandwiches, packed the bakkie with the camera stuff and snacks, extra jacket and headed towards Glacier Park! There were so many things that I remembered from the last time we were up here, but there is nothing that can take away from the absolute glory of those mountains! Every turn of the road delivered another stunning view....... There is very little snow left up on the slopes but a good few waterfalls still cascaded down the mountainside and everything is beautifully green........ I took photographs as fast as my finger would allow and Frank pulled over in every pulloff so we could just breathe that air - its definately different and somehow fills the lungs better too! There was not much traffic at all which was lovely too. At one stop there were little chipmunk thingys scrounging for food and I managed a good few really close up photos while they begged us for something to eat. The mountains are truely awesome (Wendy, I need that list of descriptive words again!), there is no way a camera can capture the majesty and enormity of this place. I tried taking a series of photos and will stitch them together in a while to see if I managed to get the panoramic effect........... We went up the "Going to the Sun Road" to the visitors center up the top of the pass. This is called Logan Pass and it crosses the Continental Divide with an elevation of 6646 foot. It was decidedly cooler up at the top and we were really pleased that we had jackets and jeans on today. There was also very little snow and ice up there but the wind whipped whatever cold it could find directly onto the lookout point making most people run inside with frozen teeth! The road to the east end of the park was closed because of a fire last night so we had to go back the same way again which was fine with us both. The fire was the main reason for the lack of traffic coming in this morning, but by now everyone had come around to the west entrance and there were literally hundreds of cars headed up the mountain.. I am not really good on these little roads - at all. At all. I actually get nauseaus when I look out of my window and see............. nothing! I love barriers between me and a drop that I cannot even see the bottom of! Frank knows this by now and wisely hugs the center line and knows not to use any of the outer pulloffs unless they have good solid barriers. Even he says I kinda go pale near the edge - he always says this with a little laugh in his face and voice......... But all this makes for good gentle driving and more photo opportunities. The views are truely stunning and on the way back the light had already changed and we were coming from a different angle, so the camera again clicked away endlessly capturing even more little bits of this place to take home with us. Lake McDonald is beautiful - the color of the water is an unbelievable blue/green with lighter shades around the 'coast line'. The pebbles are an incredible array of different colors and with the wind whipping up the little white horses, it made for some really amazing views. The clouds started closing in as well, which made for sun rays through the thin spots and this made for some lovely sunspots in an otherwise darkening scenery. I normally get my feet in all sorts of water - but this was just too cold... so I just let my fingers do the work this time around. Yes, I did pick up a few rocks and will add them to the rock collections of the other travels.....we could make a really pretty rock garden by the end of this trip! Even Frank picked up a pebble or two. The Skilpads are normally a good many pounds heavier going back home as we pick up interesting stones/rocks wherever we go. We did not do any hiking as Frank is still not feeling really great and we did not want to push that side of things right now - we still have a long road ahead of us. But after most of the day at Glacier Park, we did explore the little town of Whitefish and ate some Chinese food. Neither of us felt much like shopping and decided that we would do without the things we need for a few more days - nothing urgent at all. And we headed back to the campgrounds. I think we passed about 20 other campgrounds that all had level lots and no 'back of the park' section. We are learning. It will take a few days to get into the swing of things and learn to go and see where they want to put us before paying for the site....... but it's good and quiet here and apparently that is what we need right now. It has surprised us just how tired we are and we are sleeping a lot more than we had for the past months at home. I think the stress is catching up with us, but we know that will pass on too. This morning we woke up to a really special text message on the cell phone from my eldest daughter, Lisa - she is making me Granny Annie! Mom, you will be a Great Grandma! Somebody, anybody - tell her I am too young for this! :-) I have a feeling it will be a girl :-) .... Later today Steven called and we had a good chat - he sounds great and is in the process of applying for a different job - good luck on Friday, my boy! Right when we came out of Glacier Park the phone rang with a voicemail. My youngest daugher, Joleen had called from Marines training in North Carolina - she had earned a phone call and no one was answering their phones! She sounded so tired and sad, it broke my heart. But she is good and tough and will make it through. So. I managed to be in contact with the U3 group all in one day, and to know they are doing well is simply wonderful! Tomorrow, Monday, we plan on heading into Canada. We want to spend a couple of days up on the Icefield Parkway before heading into Alberta. And Penny! Oh yes! The huckleberry shake was fan-tastic! Too many of those could spell big-hip-trouble....... Love and Light Especially to U3 Annie and Frank XXXXXxxx www.RoadrunnersUSA.com www.livingwithcml.blogspot.com www.PenniesforCancer.com